The Roosters also have the funds to add Cherry-Evans to a forward pack filled with representative players and a spine featuring play-making prodigy Sam Walker, captain James Tedesco and from next season, NSW hooker Reece Robson.
One club that isn’t in the mix for Cherry-Evans is South Sydney. The signatures of Lewis Dodd and Brandon Smith in the past six months have taken up what’s left of the club’s salary cap, while players such Cameron Murray, Latrell Mitchell and Cody Walker are also on big money.
Daly Cherry-Evans and Wayne Bennett celebrate after Queensland won the Origin decider in 2020.Credit: NRL Photos
“We don’t have money in the salary cap,” Bennett said. “If you haven’t got a halfback, and you’re struggling a bit, of course a club will do whatever you can to get your hands on him. They don’t come up too often like this.
“I’m sure wherever Daly goes, he’ll be good for them as well. There’ll be some club that will need a halfback and probably pretty close to being the top team, but they just haven’t got the right player at halfback right now.
“He’s virtually injury-free. Plays good football every week, so he’s not ready for retirement, that’s one place he’s not going.”
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However, Bennett, who has long criticised the NRL’s trade window, said the Cherry-Evans saga was a bad look for the game.
“This does nothing for the game. It does nothing for the club. It’s wrong, and I wish we’d fix it,” Bennett said.
“You don’t see this in Aussie rules, they are our major competitor. We’ve hit the self-destruct button four weeks into a football season that’s already provided some great football.
“The whole focus is on what a couple of players or clubs have done. So, clubs have done whatever the case. It just shouldn’t happen. It shouldn’t be allowed to happen.”
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